


Do What You Love

by fandomshere_fandomsthere



Category: Game Grumps
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Arin is an insecure bean, College AU, Dan is a ray of sunshine, Fluff, M/M, SO MUCH FLUFF
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-01
Updated: 2016-10-01
Packaged: 2018-08-18 19:42:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,152
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8173682
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fandomshere_fandomsthere/pseuds/fandomshere_fandomsthere
Summary: What do you want to be when you grow up? Happy or successful?





	

            “Dude, why have you never taken any art classes?” Dan said. Arin lifted his gaze from the doodle-laden notebook, pushing a lock of brown hair out of his eyes.

            “What makes you say that?” he asked.

            “Look at those drawings!” Dan exclaimed, gesturing to a realistic pencil drawing of a bear in the margins of Arin’s calculus notes. Its eyes gleamed, making it look practically alive. “The professors would be blown away.”

            Arin erased a pencil smudge by the bear’s ear with a shrug. “I dunno man. There are people here a lot better than I am.” He smirked. “Like, you know, the whole art department.”

            Dan scoffed. “Arin, come on. I couldn’t do something that detailed if I tried for hours. You do it in like what, five minutes?” He shook his head and ran a hand through his dark brown curls, causing them to stick up at awkward angles. He turned the notebook around so that it was right side up from his point of view, admiring the many doodles.

            Some people would look at Arin’s notebook and dismiss him as a student who couldn’t focus based on the scribbles littering it. Dan was amazed when he looked at it, however. There was at least one doodle on every page among the complicated formulae and definitions of math terms he could never hope to wrap his head around. As a music major, the most mathematical thing Dan did was count out the rhythm of sixteenth notes. He focused instead on the drawings. He noted that Arin had a wide range of styles, from photorealistic to downright cartoony. The corners of his mouth turned up in a small smile when he saw his own stylized face in the corner of a page, a toothy grin spread across his features and a speech bubble coming from his mouth that said _Hey nerd!_

            “Drawing me in your calc notes again?” Dan said teasingly. He looked at Arin with half-lidded eyes and a lazy smirk, an expression that would have set the cheeks of any unsuspecting girl aflame.

            “Because I was thinking of something stupid,” Arin teased back, sliding his notebook back across the table and stuffing it in his backpack.

            “Are you sure it’s not because you find me distracting?” Dan’s eyebrows waggled up and down. Arin’s only response was to roll his eyes and shake his head, eliciting a laugh from his friend.

            “Anyway, I’ve got class.” Arin shouldered his enormous backpack. “I’ll see you later.”

            “Me too actually,” Dan said, stealing a glance at the clock. The two friends bid each other goodbye and headed off in opposite directions. Arin left the hustle and bustle of the college cafeteria for the slightly less hectic path to the science building. He zipped up his thick hoodie and let out a sigh, his breath creating a barely visible cloud in the chilly autumn air.

            Dan had been right about a few things. Arin knew that he should take at least one art class. It might break up his dull routine; he had chosen to major in computer sciences—something he was good at, but didn’t enjoy at all. Whenever someone had a computer problem, he’d managed to fix it. Whether that was by luck or skill was to be debated. It wasn’t a field that required much creativity, that was for sure. He’d much rather be in a studio with his hands covered in pastels or charcoal or clay or _anything_ but computer chips, but being an artist just wasn’t a reliable option. It was a hobby, not a career. Dan had avidly argued against this, saying that anyone who had enough passion could make it.

            Arin’s cheeks warmed slightly as he thought about a debate he’d had with the other man. Dan’s cinnamon brown eyes had been alight with passion as he’d stood up for what he believed in. They’d called the disagreement a draw, but if Dan had kept looking at Arin with that fire in his gaze, he probably would have melted. Arin sighed again as he begrudgingly admitted to himself that his friend was right about something else yet again—he was terribly distracting. Nearly everything about Dan was endearing; his smile that lit up the room, his clumsiness that came with being built as lanky as a scarecrow, and his warm laugh that came from deep in his stomach.

            The door to the science building squeaked loudly, but Arin hardly noticed it. He was too deep in his thoughts about Dan. They’d been friends since Arin’s freshman year of high school. He’d be lying if he told anyone he’d never wondered if they could ever be more. Every time the thought had come up, Arin shoved it to the back of his mind. Their friendship was too precious to risk. Arin wasn’t even sure if Dan was gay.

            Hell, he barely had his _own_ sexuality figured out.

            By the time Arin got to the computer lab, most of the class was already there. He went to his usual place in the middle and plopped down unceremoniously, preparing himself for two hours of ridiculously dull, useful information. Dan’s smiling, penciled face grinned out at him from the corner of his calculus notebook as he rummaged through his backpack. He stared back at it for a moment before swiftly getting what he needed and closing the zipper.

            He could think about that later.

* * *

 

            “Hey!”

            Arin looked over his shoulder to see Dan jogging up to him, his hand raised in greeting and a grin on his face. Arin gave him a high-five in their typical greeting once he caught up, and they began walking side by side to the dorms. Classes were over for the day, and most of the students were either heading to the library to study or to the dorms to drink until they could barely remember their own names. It was the weekend after all.

            “How was music theory?” Arin asked. Dan shrugged, his hands in his pockets.

            “It was alright,” he said. “Not very interesting though.”

            “But I thought you wanted to write music,” Arin said, one eyebrow raised.

            “Yeah,” Dan agreed. “But like…rock music I guess. Stuff from the seventies and eighties. We’ve mostly been focusing on the classical shit. Bach, Mozart, Tchaikovsky…you know.”

            “Yeah, that’s not really you,” Arin remarked.

            “Hell no,” Dan laughed. “Can you imagine me walking into rehearsal telling everyone I’d written some twenty-page symphony?”

            “Brian would totally be into it,” Arin said with a grin. “Ross would probably strangle you though.” Dan laughed harder, and Arin joined in. They kept laughing like a couple of idiots all the way up to the dorms, earning many strange looks.

            “Why do you have to live at the top of a fucking skyscraper,” Arin huffed as he reached the final step at the top of the dorm building. Dan rolled his eyes and fished around in his back pocket for his keys.

            “You’re so dramatic,” Dan said. “It’s only seven floors.”

            “Yeah, _only_ seven,” Arin mumbled under his breath, still winded. He jumped slightly when one of Dan’s spindly fingers gently prodded his soft stomach. “What was that for?”

            “Just eat a little less and you’ll be fine,” Dan said, a joking note in his voice. Arin swatted his hand away and they entered his friend’s dorm. He threw himself down on the couch with excess force, groaning and pressing a hand to his forehead.

            “I don’t think I’m gonna make it Dan,” he whined. “I’m dying.”

            Dan gasped and knelt at Arin’s side, taking his hand. “Is there anything I can do?”

            “Come closer,” Arin whispered. “I need to tell you something.”

            Dan leaned forward, turning his head to put his ear closer to Arin’s mouth. Arin let out a weak, pathetic sounding cough. He angled his head up and said in Dan’s ear, “You’re a little bitch.” Dan threw a pillow over his face, muffling his immature giggles.

            “Do you want to play Mario Kart or what?” Dan said, lifting the pillow.

            “Duh,” Arin said as he sat up. “I’m player one!”

            “It’s my game!” Dan argued.

            “I play better that way!”

            Arin ended up being player one, but it didn’t make as much of a difference as he had let on. They both sucked at Mario Kart. Curses and laughter filled the room as they constantly fell off of the course and came in last place. Dan threatened Arin’s life when it was his turn to pick a course and he chose the infamous Rainbow Road. Somehow, falling off of the edge of a road floating in space and plummeting to the earth below with every turn made the game even more fun. After an hour, Dan called it a night of horrible go-kart maneuvering and let Arin play by himself, choosing to watch him instead.

            “Your band has a gig coming up, right?” Arin said. He cursed as he fell into the same pit of lava for the third time.

            “Yeah. We’re playing at a party tomorrow,” Dan confirmed, his gaze fixed on the screen. “We’re having a bigger one in a couple weeks though.”

            “Really?”

            Dan nodded. “We haven’t really gotten the word out yet. Been too busy practicing.”

            “Where are you playing?”

            “A club in town. They’re having a local band night, and we’re the opening and closing act. Gotta love eighties cover bands right?”

            Arin looked over at Dan, a grin on his face. He didn’t even notice that Yoshi had just thrown a bomb at his character. “That’s great man! You should start advertising that!”

            “Advertising?” Dan repeated.

            “Yeah, like getting posters or something,” Arin went on. “You could make a bunch of copies and put them up around campus. You’d probably get a bunch of people! It would be awesome!”

            “That’s actually a good idea,” Dan said. He chewed on the inside of his lip, his gaze unreadable.

            “What?” Arin said.

            “Will you design the poster?” Dan asked.

            Arin averted his gaze and rubbed his stubbly chin. “I don’t know man,” he mumbled. “I haven’t taken any graphic design classes or anything. It could end up looking really shitty.”

            “Oh come on,” Dan said. “Dude. I don’t know why you’re so self-conscious about your art. It’s awesome!”

            “I’m just not used to people seeing it,” Arin said, still not looking at Dan.

            “You let me look at it all the time!” Dan argued.

            “Well, you’re different,” Arin said. “I know you won’t judge me or anything.” Dan went silent for a moment before turning off the television. He looked at Arin with soft eyes and gently placed a hand on his shoulder.

            “Arin, no one’s gonna judge you,” he said. “I’m being serious. Your art is some of the best I’ve ever seen. It’s awesome. Everyone who sees it is going to love it, and if they don’t, who cares? There are way more people who’ll like it than who won’t. People who hate on you are just jealous of what you can do.”

            “I still don’t know,” Arin said. “I’m really inexperienced with digital art.”

            “It doesn’t have to be digital. You can paint something and then have it made into a poster, right?” Dan asked.

            “Yeah,” Arin said with a slight sigh. He was silent for a moment, scratching his chin in thought as he stared at the floor. Dan’s gaze was like a physical weight on his shoulders. It was just one poster. He didn’t want to disappoint his friend, especially when it involved something Dan wanted to do for the rest of his life. Arin looked back up and gave a clear, determined nod. Dan’s face split into a grin, and he wrapped his arms around Arin’s shoulders in a quick, tight embrace. Arin returned it, wondering what he’d gotten himself into.

* * *

 

            The art building was a maze of studios, classrooms, and supply closets. Arin found himself getting lost among the mural-covered walls, but he didn’t mind. He felt more at home in this building than he had anywhere else on campus. It was far more colorful than the white walls of the science and technology building, and seeing students with chalk handprints on their jeans or marker smudges on their cheeks brought him back to the early days of his high school career. He shifted the canvas under his arm. It had been years since he’d painted anything. Hopefully painting was like riding a bike—after you hadn’t done it for a while, it only took a few tries to get the hang of it again.

            Eventually, he found an empty room filled with easels. Sunlight filtered through the many windows, illuminating the room well enough that Arin wouldn’t have to turn on the lights. He did so anyway, figuring he’d be there for a while. With a determined huff, he gathered his hair into a small ponytail, put his canvas on an easel, and gathered paints from the supply closet next door. He stood with his hands on his hips, glaring at the canvas as if it had just insulted his mother.

            This went on for about ten minutes until an idea had formed vaguely in Arin’s mind. He found the color he wanted, put the paint on the palette, and started painting, hoping against all hope that what he was about to do looked alright. Thinking too hard proved to be something that hindered his artistic process, so he let his mind wander a bit while he painted. He hummed nameless tunes, went through calculus problems in his head, and wondered what he was going to have for dinner that night. Probably ramen noodles again.

            The sun was just beginning to set when Arin was finally done. He looked over his work with a critical eye, looking for paint smudges or places where the colors hadn’t blended well enough. After fixing a few errors, he deemed it close enough to perfect to be acceptable. Before him on the easel was a professional yet vintage looking poster for a band called “Goldfish Water Cooler,” a seventies and eighties cover band playing at a local venue in a three week’s time. Arin nodded once in satisfaction and got to work cleaning up his supplies, being sure to put everything back exactly where he’d found it. By the time he was done, the paint was dry. He smiled to himself and picked his finished poster up, feeling accomplished. The first thing on his mind was that he couldn’t wait to show Dan.

* * *

 

            That wasn’t the last time Arin went to the art building. The very next week, he went back to that same studio to paint again. The sunset outside the windows had been so beautiful, and he desperately wanted to capture it. Rather than focusing in his word processing class, he envisioned the colors he would blend together to get the perfect pink-orange for the sky and how he should paint the trees black for high contrast.

            Suddenly he was drawing everything. Yes, he’d doodled in his notebook endlessly, and that hadn’t changed, but he’d begun to actually _draw_ again. He’d sit under a tree and draw the leaves that had fallen, sketch the people in the cafeteria, and draw his friends in more detail. Arin shared his ideas for future projects with Dan, who listened with great interest.

            “See, this is what I missed,” Dan said one day at lunch.

            “What do you mean?” Arin said, pausing in his description of an idea he had which involved melting crayons with a blow dryer.

            “You used to love art so much,” Dan said. “And you were so _good_ at it! I could tell it hurt you to give it up, even if you couldn’t admit that to yourself.”

            “What he’s trying to say,” Ross, the drummer of Goldfish Water Cooler said, “is that he asked you to do the poster for our little concert to help you get back into it.”

            “Really?” Arin asked, astonished.

            Danny nodded, not quite meeting his gaze. “I thought if I gave you a little nudge, you’d get back into something you loved.” He grinned widely. “And it seems like it worked!”

            Arin smiled slightly in response.

* * *

 

            Three weeks passed after Arin finished the poster, and it was the day of Goldfish Water Cooler’s concert downtown. Arin stood in front of his mirror in his dorm, self-consciously staring at his reflection. He wanted to look a little nicer than usual for the biggest gig his friends had ever gotten, but that wasn’t the only reason. After weeks of thinking, he’d made a decision, one that he couldn’t easily go back on. Pros and cons had been weighed, and he’d chosen the best option.

            Arin had ditched his usual worn jeans and graphic t-shirt for dark blue jeans, a black t-shirt, and a maroon jacket. The jeans fit a little more tightly than normal, showing the thickness of his thighs that came from his solid build, but he tried not to let it bother him too much. Arin slicked back his hair, made finger guns at his reflection like he was the Fonz, laughed at his silliness, and returned his shoulder-length hair to its original state before meeting his friends Barry and Suzy in the parking lot. They all piled into the car and drove to the location of the concert, a small club that had brick walls inside and out and a little stage in the back. There was already a small crowd when they got there, and Arin found himself getting excited. He ordered a virgin cocktail and sat at one of the tables near the front of the stage while Suzy and Barry mingled.

            The show started half an hour later when the manager of the club came on to the stage, thanking everyone for coming and welcoming them to the show. He was met with many cheers from the now sizeable crowd, and the cheers only grew louder when he announced Goldfish Water Cooler. They came on stage, smiling and waving. Dan smiled at Arin from the mic. Ross clicked his drumsticks together four times.

            Their opening started with their own rendition of “Take On Me.” Dan’s voice fit the song perfectly, Arin noted. The crowd seemed to agree. They danced and sang along with the first song as well as “Everybody Wants to Rule the World,” and then it was time for the next band to come on. Arin looked around for Dan and was disappointed to find he couldn’t see him.

            _He’s probably backstage helping out,_ he reasoned. He shrugged it off and enjoyed the music.

            There were four bands that played after Goldfish Water Cooler, each one of them unique yet enjoyable. The manager came back on stage to thank everyone again for coming, gave an announcement about two-hour happy hours on Saturdays, and Dan’s band was once again on stage. They topped off their performance with “Livin’ On A Prayer” and ended fittingly with “Don’t You (Forget About Me)”.

            “Thank you, good night!” Dan said loudly into the microphone as the crowd cheered. Arin clapped louder than anyone else, hitting his hands together with so much force that they stung. The crowd around the stage dispersed slightly, and Arin chatted with Barry and Suzy about their favorite bands (apart from the one comprised entirely of their friends, of course) while they waited for Danny, Brian, and Ross.

            “There they are!” Suzy said when their friends came into view.

            “Here we are!” Dan said, arms spread as wide as his grin.

            “That was great, you guys!” Suzy said as she stood up to give each band member a hug in turn.

            “Yeah, it was awesome!” Arin agreed. “You guys were definitely the best ones up there.”

            “You’re just saying that because we’re your friends,” Ross joked.

            “You’re right Ross, you guys sucked ass,” Arin said with a grin.

            “Oh, fuck you,” Ross chuckled, lightly punching Arin in the arm.

            “Ladies, ladies, please,” Dan said, putting himself between Arin and Ross. “No need to fight. There is more than enough Danny to go around.” He put his arms around both of his friends’ shoulders, and everyone laughed.

            “Let’s celebrate, you guys,” Barry said. “Drinks on me!” His statement was met with cheers and promises to order the most expensive thing the bar had to offer. Arin smiled and took a step towards the bar, ready to join his friends, but stopped when he felt Dan’s hand rest gently on his shoulder. Arin turned to see the ghost of a smile on his friend’s lips, cinnamon eyes soft and warm, full of affection for his friends. The curly haired man jerked his head toward the back of the bar, and Arin nodded. The two of them went past the stage and out the back door into the cold night. Arin zipped up his jacket, a light shiver going up his spine.

            Dan reached into his pocket and pulled out a thick, white, knitted scarf. He wrapped it around Arin’s neck with a small smile. “Here you go.”

            “Thanks,” Arin said, his voice muffled by the wool. He adjusted it so it kept him warm but allowed him to talk. The scarf smelled like Dan’s cologne. They walked in silence for a while. The only sounds were their footsteps. Despite the fact that it was Friday night, there wasn’t much traffic in terms of cars or people; the college Dan and Arin attended was in a place that was large for a town, but small for a city.

            _Moonlight sure looks good on you,_ Arin thought, stealing a glance over at Dan. The silver light of the moon was reflected in his eyes, and the angle of the light accentuated the defined lines of his cheekbones. He looked at Arin, catching him staring, and offered a soft smile. Arin returned it, his cheeks a little pink. Hopefully he could blame it on the cold.

            “So, now that it’s been a few minutes since the performance ended and congratulations are out of the way,” Dan said, “how did we do?”

            “You guys sounded great!” Arin said, just as enthusiastically as he had when the band had finished. “I’m being honest, I swear. The crowd loved you guys.”

            Dan’s smile grew a little and he looked at the stars. “Good to hear.”

            “And I wouldn’t be surprised if someone asked you to do another concert soon,” Arin added. “There were a ton of people from the college there.”

            “Yeah,” Dan agreed. “Thanks to you.”

            Arin waved him off. “Oh, stop it, I hardly did anything.”

            “Give yourself more credit,” Dan said. “Who knows how many people would have showed up if you hadn’t made that poster?”

            “Yeah, I guess you’re right,” Arin relented. Dan seemed satisfied, giving a single, firm nod. They fell into comfortable silence again. Arin stared down at the sidewalk in front of him and shoved his hands in his pockets. He knew he needed to say something soon. He took a deep breath and looked at Dan again. “Hey, uh…speaking of that.”

            Dan’s eyes were on him, inquisitive and expectant. “What’s up?”

            Arin took a deep breath. “I’m changing my major,” he said quickly. “I’m going to study art.”

            Dan’s eyes widened. He stopped in his tracks and turned to face Arin fully, eyebrows raised. “Wait, really?”

            Arin nodded. “I’ve been thinking about it for a few weeks. I really did miss doing art. Computer science is one of the most boring things I’ve ever had to endure. I sat through three-hour long lectures about how to change fonts! _Fonts,_ Dan!”

            “This is great!” Dan said excitedly, running a hand through his hair. “College is so much easier when you’re doing something you actually like. Life is too.”

            “I know,” Arin agreed.

            “Does anyone else know yet?” Dan asked.

            “Just my advisor. I wanted to tell you first, since you’re pretty much the reason it’s happening. If you hadn’t asked me to make that poster, I’d be working at an IBM for the rest of my life in some dead-end office job.”

            “Dude, you have no idea how happy I am right now.” Dan’s statement was actually false. Arin could see the excitement and joy in his warm brown eyes.

            “Thanks man,” Arin said with a smile. “I really owe you one. I owe you a lot. One for every day I don’t have to be in that damn computer lab.”

            “You don’t owe me anything,” Dan said with a light scoff. “I was just trying to make you happy.” Arin’s smile widened, and he pulled Dan into a tight hug, his large arms wrapping easily around Dan’s small frame.

            “You did a pretty good job, then,” he said into Dan’s shoulder. Dan laughed and returned the hug, resting his head against Arin’s.

            They stood like that for a few moments, wrapped up in each other’s arms. Arin didn’t want to let go. Dan was warm and felt like home. The hair that tickled Arin’s face smelled fresh and clean, as if it had just been washed, and he could faintly hear Dan’s heartbeat. Arin closed his eyes as tightly as he could, committing this moment to memory while wishing it could last forever. Dan’s hands slid from Arin’s back to his biceps, and he pulled out of the embrace while still holding on. Their faces weren’t very far apart—no more than a foot. Dan’s eyes flitted across Arin’s face, clouded over with an unreadable emotion. Arin raised an eyebrow at the other man’s pink face and troubled gaze.

            “What’s wrong?” Arin asked.

            “Nothing, nothing, I…” Dan trailed off and mumbled something unintelligible. He loosened his grip on Arin’s arms but didn’t let go.

            “You okay?” Arin said, confused but mostly concerned. Dan’s Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed thickly and his cheeks darkened a few shades. He chewed on the inside of his lip and looked over Arin’s shoulder at nothing, eyes distant. Arin was starting to get a little freaked out. He opened his mouth to say something when Dan suddenly snapped out of it, looking into Arin’s eyes.

“Arin, how long have we known each other?”

Arin blinked at the unexpected question. “Um. Like five years.”

“Okay,” Dan said. “And we’re best friends, right?”

“Dude, come on. What’s with the rhetorical questions?”

“Just humor me.”

“Alright, alright,” Arin sighed. “Yes, we’re best friends. We’ve been best friends since we worked together on a project in biology and made a cell model out of nothing except pipe cleaners, ping pong balls, and glitter glue.”

Dan smiled. “So we can work through pretty much anything, right?”

“Yeah,” Arin said, albeit hesitantly.

“Great. Then do me a favor and don’t freak out about this.” He chewed on the inside of his lip for a moment. “I care about you Arin. Like, a lot. Like, more than is normal for friends. Or even best friends.”

Arin’s entire face felt like it was on fire.

“And I know this is weird timing,” Dan continued, running a hand through his hair again, “but I was kind of planning on telling you tonight anyway? I knew if I attached a date to it I couldn’t keep running away from it and getting scared. I just—you’re really important to me, man. I don’t know what I’d do if we weren’t friends anymore. I’ve kind of had a thing for you for a few years, but I never said anything. I just didn’t want you to be grossed out or think I was weird because I had a crush on you.” Dan took a deep breath, realizing he was rambling. “So yeah. I hope that doesn’t make things weird between us.” He looked up at Arin, relief now mixed in with his tension. “So, I have to ask—“

            Arin was kissing him before he could finish his sentence. It was quick, and more akin to Arin smashing his mouth against Dan’s than actual kissing, but it still counted in his book. They broke apart quickly, staring at each other with wide eyes and red faces for a moment. Arin opened his mouth to say something, and Dan kissed him again, one hand still on his bicep, the other gently cradling his face.

            Arin returned the kiss and put his hands on Dan’s waist, pulling him closer. Dan tasted like Skittles and his stubble was scratchy. Dan’s lips were soft and warm and fit perfectly in his own. Dan’s hair tickled Arin’s face and almost made him sneeze. Dan’s thumb was brushing Arin’s cheekbone gently. Dan was everywhere. Dan was all that existed in that moment.

            That moment of Dan ended, and Arin’s face felt even hotter than before. The warmth of his cheeks paled in comparison to the warmth in his heart he felt for this man, this wonderful man who was smiling at him like he was the most precious thing in the world, something to be cherished and treasured. Arin smiled back.

            “So, does this mean you like me back?” Dan said.

            “You’re such an asshole,” Arin said in the most adoring tone possible before pressing a kiss to Dan’s forehead. “Of course I do.” Dan grinned hugely, and Arin’s heart swelled even further. He was the reason for that smile. That smile was there because Dan cared about him. Dan took Arin’s hand and laced their fingers together, and they wordlessly agreed that it was time to head back and join their friends.

            “ _There_ you guys are!” Ross said when they walked back in. “We had no idea where you went, and—“ His eyes flitted down to Dan and Arin’s joined hands, and he stopped short. Ross grinned and let out a whoop, punching the air triumphantly with both hands.

            “What the hell?” Arin said incredulously. Dan shrugged, equally confused.

            “I _told_ you Barry!” Ross shouted. He ran over to Barry and stuck out his hand expectantly. “Fork it over!” Barry grumbled to himself and pulled out his wallet, taking out ten dollars and slapping it with unnecessary force into Ross’ palm.

            “Wait a second—you guys took bets?” Arin said. “What did they bet on?” He looked at Suzy.

            “If you guys would ever get it through your thick skulls that you like each other,” she said with a smirk.

            “Thank you for believing in us Ross!” Danny said, smiling. Ross raised his glass with a grin before waving the ten dollar bill in Barry’s scowling face.

            “I can’t believe they took bets,” Arin grumbled.

            “Arin, come on, it’s Ross,” Dan chuckled. He squeezed Arin’s hand gently. “Hey, what are you doing on Saturday?”

            “Probably just hanging out with some loser,” Arin said, smirking slightly.

            “Me too!” Dan said with sarcastic enthusiasm, throwing his hands in the air.

             Arin laughed. “C’mon, let’s get a drink.”

**Author's Note:**

> I got the band name Goldfish Water Cooler from one of the Bloodborne episodes. I think it was the one where they were talking about Betty White Tit Fuck. Anyway.
> 
> This started out as a short story assignment for my creative writing course, and it turned into this monstrosity. I had a ton of fun writing it, and I hope you had as much fun reading it!


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